Government seeks to further restrict the Senate

The Howard government is proposing changes to parliamentry committee processes that would see the number of Senate committees reduced from 16 to 10 and only allow coalition senators to chair those committees. There are some increases to other senate operations, such as more estimates committees, and the government claims it will save some money, but overall this is an audatious misuse of power designed to stifle the voices of opposition and to disrupt the processes of democratic enquiry. As the journalist Kerry O'Brien noted on the ABC's 7.30 report,

The Government's proposed changes to the Senate committee process has been branded evil by the Opposition Leader and have been widely interpreted as just the latest manifestation of hubris delivered courtesy of the Government's Senate majority... Not surprisingly, Labor, the independents and the minor parties are all crying foul and point to this as further proof that the Government is running from scrutiny - and not just in the Senate

This move even has the labour party crying fowl with Senator Robert Ray calling it an "emasculation of the senate as an institution" and opposition leader Kim Beazley called the move "a systematic display of arrogance and avoidance of scrutiny."

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